Abstract

Pseudomonas aeruginosa, an opportunistic human pathogen, causes many biofilm-mediated chronic infections. In this study, biofilm structures of various clinical strains of P. aeruginosa isolated from hospitalized patients were examined and their influence on the biofilm-dispersing effects of chemicals was investigated. The clinical isolates formed structurally distinct biofilms that could be classified into three different groups: 1) mushroom-like, 2) thin flat, and 3) thick flat structures. A dispersion of these differently structured biofilms was induced using two biofilm-dispersing agents, anthranilate and sodium nitroprusside (SNP). Although both SNP and anthranilate could disperse all types of biofilms, the thick flat biofilms were dispersed less efficiently than the biofilms of other structures. This suggests that biofilm-dispersing agents have higher potency on the biofilms of porous structures than on densely packed biofilms.

• Keywords: Pseudomonas aeruginosa; clinical isolates; biofilm; biofilm dispersion; sodium nitroprusside; anthranilate; biofilm structure